Requisites
by xxangel221xx
Summary: AU. Kaoru lives a happy existence on her family's relatively small domain. But when her father suddenly dies and war explodes, she unexpectedly gets married off to a man known as the 'manslayer'...
1. Trouble

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Rurouni Kenshin characters.**

* * *

Prologue: Trouble

* * *

"If we have any luck at all, the central army will arrive in a week. But on their preceding infantry, staving off an attack would be virtually impossible. Diplomatic relations have been severed at the Fukuoka conference."

The men seated around a low table fell silent at the adviser's words. Each balked at the prospect of invasion; total war would then be inevitable, followed by imminent chaos and famine. If their city state was to survive the first wave of soldiers, they would have to draft the already limited number of unlisted men. Even that, however, would not be enough if the central army was to follow suit.

"Then what can we do?" Raikoji Muneiwa asked, brow furrowed. Then, he turned to the man sitting at the head. "We cannot possibly abandon this domain. Our lands have far too many resources to just leave behind for Isurugi Raijuta and his unit."

Kamiya Koshijiro rose, and set his eyes on a map spread. After several minutes of steep concentration he said, "We will defend our land." At this, several men burst into a number of protests.

"But how?" another interjected, "A struggle seems futile. It will be better if we surrender now. I understand your principles, Koshijiro-dono, but would not more lives be saved if an armistice was instated?"

"I would like to think it possible. However, Raijuta is not known for his kindness. Whether there is a truce or not, he plunders all lands under his control. I am afraid that these lands will not survive afterward, Gasuke-san. I cannot fathom the fate the people will suffer if authority is relinquished."

Gasuke sat back, and shook his head. "I still do not understand. Either way, this domain will be lost."

"Whether it will be lost or not, we will have fought honorably. That is most important." Koshijiro remarked. "Now let us set our focuses on the west wall's defense-"

"Father?"

The men looked up sharply. A young woman had slid the shoji screen door open. Instantly, Koshijiro's resolve seemed to soften as he beckoned toward his daughter. "Kaoru?"

She bowed. "There is a messenger outside of the defense."

"Send a guard man to retrieve him. Instruct him that I am about to finish this meeting. He can wait outside of this room; I will not be long."

There was a pause in which the men looked expectantly for Kaoru leave. When she did not, Koshijiro questioned, "Do you wish to speak with me?"

"I... I want to know what's going on," Kaoru said hesitantly. She ignored several voices of disparage as she continued, "There is a battle coming. I want to be of assistance."

Koshijiro looked at her before saying, "How did you know, my daughter?"

"The sentinels are on constant watch. The court is agitated, and the soldiers grow restless-"

"You should merely focus on keeping yourself safe," a gangly man, Tanishi, interrupted. "Women should not involve themselves in matters that do not pertain to them."

"As the daughter of this domain's ruler, I believe I should involve myself," Kaoru replied determinedly. "I care for these lands as much as you."

Tanishi scoffed. "Girl, I suggest you keep your mouth shut. A woman should not be audacious in the presence of men-"

"Tanishi, that is enough," Koshijiro intervened, voice touched with the slightest bit of warning. "Remember that you are speaking with my daughter." With that, he turned to Kaoru. "This is a meeting between me and them. If you want to know anything, address me afterward. Thank you for your message."

Kaoru knew it was over. Head up high, she walked out of the room and slid the door shut.

Koshijiro, meanwhile, gathered the men around the map. It was as if there was never an intrusion; the rest of the gathering was spent on preparing for battle.

* * *

It was late into the night when two men, burdened with heavy rucksacks, moved across the castle's small courtyard. Stealthily, they crept among the structure's perimeter until they were met with a towering wall. This was their only obstacle in reaching the wilderness of outside; one of the men, Hachisuka, began uncovering a small hollow before the rampart.

"Are you sure that this will work?" Tanishi asked, as he hurriedly bent down to help.

"It should," the other responded huskily. "Because there's no way in hell I'm gonna stay here and get slaughtered. Koshijiro is a great man, but I can't see how I should get myself killed defending this place."

"We have tried to persuade him. As always, however, the man was unmovable."

Hachisuka shook his head. "Pah. I bet that Kaoru girl gets her stubbornness from him," he flouted, as he crawled down into the tiny, shoulder-sized hole. Tanishi followed suit.

"Probably. Her mother was a quiet one," the gangly man said, as he and Hachisuka groveled underground. "The girl's insolence is nothing short of indifference. I do not see how Koshijiro would have raised a daughter like that. She practices kenjutsu like any other man. It is _unnatural_, to say the least."

"It's unlucky that he treasures her. You know, this whole war could have been avoided if it weren't for that Kaoru girl."

Tanishi grunted as he and Hachisuka finally crawled out at the other side of the wall. Wrestling his rucksack out of the hole, he muttered curiously, "How?"

"A few weeks ago, I carried a message for Koshijiro. It was from Tani Jusanro."

Hachisuka's eyes widened. "_Jusanro_? The warlord Jusanro?"

"You are correct," Tanishi said, as they both carefully made their way through a patch of caltrops. "Jusanro issued Koshijiro an ultimatum. He said that he would call back Raijuta and his forces if Koshijiro gave him an offering."

"Don't tell me..." Hachisuka muttered, in disbelief.

"Jusanro wanted Kaoru's hand in marriage. The union would have been for political purposes. He demanded that this land then be part of her dowry. On these terms, Jusanro would have taken over, but left us to rule ourselves. He would have demanded a census and a general tax, but that would have been it. A damn war could have been avoided altogether."

Hachisuka was still in shock. "So we're in this mess because of that Kamiya girl?"

"Yes," Tanishi answered poignantly. "And Koshijiro, because of his stubbornness on refusing to let his daughter leave."

"Bah!"

At last, they reached a small clearing that bordered the edge of the forest. There, two mares were tied; Hachisuka and Tanishi each saddled a mare and cut the rope. Immediately, they rode onto the nearest roadway. After a while the mares galloped at a steadier pace.

When they were a safe distance away from the walls of the city state, they slowed their strides.

"We'll head to Kyoto," Hachisuka said, "there we'll find some sanity in the midst of all this madness."

Tanishi pointed over the distant promontories."There should be a rest stop along here some-"

Hachisuka whipped around as Tanishi stopped, and suddenly gave a great cry of pain. The man fell off of his horse, and clutched at his chest.

Hachisuka came to an abrupt halt, hands tight around the reins in his fists. He then ran over to his friend in horror- there, wedged deeply into Tanishi's chest was a flaming arrow. He could not help, for it was already lodged in Tanishi's heart; Hachisuka could only stand there, as Tanishi thrashed about, screaming and shouting.

A deep rumbling resounded throughout the area. Slowly, Hachisuka turned, but only to meet an even more shocking sight.

There, from a great distance, were thousands upon thousands of horsemen. They were speeding black dots that roamed the plain; they carried brilliant yellow flags, each endowed with a red emblem that could only mean one thing: Raijuta and his unit were approaching!

Hachisuka yelled and scrambled over Tanishi's corpse. With all the speed he could muster, he threw himself onto the mare and dug his spurs deeply into its sides. With a cry, the mare reared up and galloped back toward the path that led to Koshijiro's domain. Gasping furiously for breath, Hachisuka held himself flat against the animal for dear life.

_'I've got to warn Koshijiro. Dammit, I gotta get out of this alive first!'_

* * *

A/N: Hmm... this introduces a whole host of problems. On a different note, there're a bunch of names that might seem unfamiliar:

Raikoji Muneiwa- Chizuru's gramps.

Gasuke and Tanishi- Two goons that get beat up by Kaoru. They chased her two students to the dojo. They were lackeys for Hachisuka.

Hachisuka- the perverted ganster with the wooden cannon from early on in RK.

Jusanro- The 'pork bun' from early and later on in the canon series.

Yeah, it seems like I used the most random people (none are going to be main characters, 'cept for Kaoru) . Anyways, I apologize if it seems too short and boring. As it is the prologue, I wrote only enough to give leeway into the next installment. See ya next chapter :)


	2. Collapse

**Disclaimer: I don't own Rurouni Kenshin. **(Honestly, does someone check this?)

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Chapter 1: Collapse

* * *

Raijuta and his men were coming. From the moment those words left Hachisuka's mouth, news of an invasion spread like wildfire.

Chaos ensued; by the minute, carriages filled to the brim with women and children rolled out of the front gates, and away from the advancing legion. However, the number of people infinitely outpaced the quantity of available vehicles- some even rode away on their own horses. Many others refused to leave; they knew only of Koshijiro's domain and no more.

Despite the confusion, the army of samurai had managed to gather at the Kamiya castle. There, orders were issued and panned. Generals and military personnel scrambled along with their units to cover the front gates. Almost all of the men were present. Both elders and young teenagers alike held a katana and a wakizashi. Some wore armor while others did not; one was seen wearing bogu while another a Western-style chain mail.

The court was in panic. Kaoru herself ran furiously through the huge, ornate rooms, and often found herself hopelessly impeded by courtiers trying to haul away their personal belongings. Tempers ran high, and ladies tripped over their juni-hitoe. Furniture was missing, as well as several rugs and paintings. In the midst of everything, however, she could not find her father.

_'Where can he be?' _she wondered frantically, as Kaoru passed yet another row of vacant rooms. She felt a rush of relief to have changed out of her kimono, and into her training gear: sarashi, a white kimono, and a dark blue hakama. Many of the quarters had been ransacked, including her own; only a worn bokken was found, rolled underneath her bare dresser. She had quickly picked it up before going on her way.

As Kaoru rounded a sharp corner, she saw stars and found herself flying back; she heard a distinct 'busu' and instantly knew that it was Myogin Yahiko whom she'd crashed into. The young woman rubbed her throbbing skull before exclaiming, "What are you doing here?"

"I can ask you the same," the ten year old boy growled. He appeared to be in equal pain.

"I thought that the carriage for the servants left already. Only a few courtiers are left."

Yahiko straightened up, and pushed himself from off the floor. "Ditto again. But I'm talking about the shuttle for you. They were looking all over the place for a sign of Koshijiro-sama's _daughter_."

Immediately, Kaoru grabbed Yahiko by the shoulders. "You've seen my father? Where is he?"

"He went down with the officers," Yahiko said blankly, surprised by the young woman's urgency. "He should be leading them in defense."

He took her moment of silence to squirm out of her grasp. Just as he moved to break into a run, a harsh hand yanked him by the collar. Yahiko slipped and fell unceremoniously on his bottom.

"What was that for, busu? I've got to help protect this city!"

Kaoru kept her hold on the young boy. "You're not going anywhere," she scowled, "until you tell me why you're sneaking around. Anyway, you're too little to fight! If you really did want to help, you would've gone down to the yard already." Her eyes fell onto a tightly wrapped envelope, which had fallen beside him upon their collision. It bore a strange steal, unrecognizable to Kaoru. "Hey, what's that?"

His hand darted out and hurriedly stuffed the envelope within the front of his kimono top."It's none of your busi-"

Yahiko froze. Quickly, their eyes locked in understanding; an abrupt silence had fallen over the land- over them- like a curtain.

Kaoru released Yahiko and walked soundlessly to an open window pane; the young boy followed her furtively. As they gazed down upon the spread of buildings and roads, Yahiko whispered, "Kaoru?"

She did not reply as the silence dragged on. Yahiko stood there agonizingly; it was as if each second acted as a minute. Still, there was an inevitable sense of foreboding- an eerie muteness seemed to permeate the air as it thickened with latent enmity. He found that he had momentarily forgotten to breath, until he found Kaoru's tense hand around his arm.

Suddenly, an invisible obstruction between endless waiting and reality broke. Yahiko had never heard anything like it: the battle cries of thousands of men, wild and frenzied. He gasped in abject astonishment as men on both horseback and foot flooded though the yonder front gates, like a rolling carpet of fire against the dark. They assimilated with the mass of green clad troops.

Within another moment, a great cry from below rose as an innumerable flock of burning arrows flew over the sky, and wedged themselves into countless buildings. The night was shattered by an array of light; the city appeared to be bathed in a ghostly glow of fire and flames. The sound of clashing metal reverberated loudly over the shouts of terrified peasants-

"Yahiko!"

Kaoru's sharp voice jerked him out of the spell, shrill and penetrating.

"We've got to get out of here," Kaoru said, complexion pale. Just as Yahiko nodded, another rain of arrows sailed through the air, and onto the wooden structure of Kamiya castle. He leapt back in surprise as a stray one pierced the ground between him and Kaoru.

"Let's go!" cried Kaoru, as they both traversed the hall and onto the steps. It was really unfortunate that they were on the fifth floor.

* * *

From a long distance away, an encampment of men slept soundly in their tents. The night was clear, and occasional gusts of early spring air blew through the open tents. Dawn edged the outermost reaches of the dark sky; dwindling fires illuminated the otherwise open field. A single banner fluttered gently in the breeze, gold trimmings gleaming against the placid blue.

This peace was broken by the heavy footsteps of a tall man, who appeared unfazed in comparison to the messenger he had earlier received.

Swiftly, he made his way through throngs of makeshift shelters and fires. The man's shadow danced quickly over the flickering embers; at last, however, he came to a stop in front of a rather unremarkable tent, much like those surrounding it. Without warning, he pushed the flap open. Saitou Hajime was only marginally surprised to find that the man inside was already awake, and fully dressed to boot.

"So you know," Saitou said calmly, thin smile apparent. "I half expected you to be gone by the first light."

The man did not answer, but slowly rose to his feet. A gleam of light was momentarily reflected from a katana onto his face as the man sheathed both of his swords. In the dark, Saitou saw the figure fasten the buckles to a lightweight cloak. Even without it, the officer mentally noted, there would not have been a single difference; _his _victims seldom lived to tell their tales.

Letting out a breath, Saitou moved to light up a tobacco pipe. Before he did, however, he quipped, "I would hurry if I were you, Battousai."

By the time he turned around, the slight figure had already disappeared. Saitou blew a long stream of smoke before moving to awaken the lieutenants.

* * *

Kaoru and Yahiko burst through the closed doors of the main tower. Gasping for breath, both fell and spluttered for fresh air as the structure behind them swayed dangerously, fire threatening to engulf it. It had taken much of their strength to meander throughout the rooms; quite a few times, Kaoru had been sure of their doom had it not been sheer luck. She roughly brushed the moisture dabbing at her eyes away- the once homely castle had become a labyrinth of snares.

In the midst of regaining her breath, Kaoru's pounding heart came to a near stop; at first, she had been too preoccupied to hear, but gradually, it echoed over the pandemonium.

The cries of the dying were growing...

They seemed to assault her conundrums relentlessly, madly. Numbly getting back on her feet, Kaoru gazed beyond the castle's front gates; what was left of the street in front was enough to speak volumes for the rest of the city.

Koshijiro's domain had truly turned into a sea of flame. All over, structures and buildings had collapsed; the corpses of fallen soldiers littered the streets, along with the scorched remains of former citizens. The dying did their best to avoid those that still, ludicrously, fought.

A petrified sense of sorrow and disbelief glued her to the spot; she felt sick at heart. Never, never had Kaoru been subjected to witness such destruction. Although she had heard atrocious tales from veteran samurai, she would have never believed that such devastation existed.

She could hear Tanishi's words echo distantly in her mind. Perhaps he had been alluding to this... her naivety in the face of true war...

"Kaoru, watch out!"

The young woman had barely a moment to look up before something hard crashed into her, and pushed her aside. It was Yahiko; a flaming mass of wood lay at the spot at which she knelt at moments before. Gasping in the hot air, she hoisted herself up and hauled the fallen Yahiko to his feet. She pulled him into a tight embrace before letting go- the massive tower behind them groaned. Both scrambled away from the leaning construction.

Kaoru cringed as hundreds of wooden beams cracked. She gave a last backward glance as they stumbled their way toward the castle gates- all at once, the structure behind swayed. Before it could have even fallen on its side, the great frames crumbled, and the entire conglomeration of flaming wood came crashing to the ground.

Kaoru's hoarse voice was lost in the tremors. "Watch out, the debris-!"

Neither Kaoru nor Yahiko made it past the front street before a thick cloud of dust and wood came over them, like a dark blanket. Kaoru had to force her eyes closed because of the flying remnants. From close by, Yahiko choked on the rubble-laden air.

She was lost in blackness. Kaoru blindly reached out for any sign of Yahiko before a heavy mass of detritus fell over her. Knocked unconscious, her body fell limply against the fallen wood, only to be covered by more.

* * *

From the city's entrance, Isurugi Raijuta rode in, triumphant. He had not even lifted his katana, and the walled city had been destroyed, almost in its entirety. Raijuta gestured to the scout beside him, who hurriedly disappeared into the clouded streets. He needed a final report for Jusanro, although the smoking buildings did much to elate him.

Raijuta glanced around, at the many dead samurai that lay in the streets. Shaking his head, he tapped the reins to his horse. It would do him well to survey the area while he awaited his retainer; Raijuta would gather those who survived, and authorize a drinking party for that night. If his other forces were successful, then they would have captured fleeing citizens at the main roads. After all, he needed women to pour the sake... and what better, to celebrate his victory?

"Do not...move any further!"

Raijuta looked up. From a huddle of dead samurai, a single, battered man had risen.

His eyes widened in amusement as he laughed mockingly, "...Koshijiro-san?"

The man limped weakly to the center of the broken street. "Raijuta."

The latter stepped down from his horse, hand ready at his sword. "Do you plan to fight me, in such a weakened state?"

Koshijiro held up his scoured katana. "I will fight honorably until my death to defend this place."

"I will not hesitate, then. Know this- at your death, I will claim victory over all your lands. Your people will be mine." Raijuta unsheathed his sword, and held it in _Joudan_, or above his head. "Let us put our abilities to the test. A contest of true strength between Satsujin-ken and the Katsujin-ken you stand so firmly by."

Koshijiro did not reply, but set himself into a defensive stance. "At your ready," he managed.

With shouts of determination, both charged, and clashed. Raijuta and Koshijiro stepped back; they were at a perfect match.

_'I've got to end this soon,' _Raijuta thought fervently. _'This is my land, I have won... yet, this single man stands in my way...'_

He could not waste any more time. Koshijiro was near death, Raijuta easily noted. The man was bleeding profusely, and his eyes were becoming unfocused. Unlike the other, who was heaving for breath, Raijuta had spent minimal strength.

"Last strike, Koshijiro!" And without warning, Raijuta launched himself into the air; Koshijiro only staggered a single step forward before Raijuta appeared from behind, eyes manic.

_'Tobi Izuma!'_

Caught off guard, Kamiya Koshijiro balked, and fell under the barrage of attacks. The hilt of his sword rolled away from his outstretched hand as his body caved and collapsed under pressure.

In a moment, Raijuta was at his side, jeering. As the general raised his sword, a distinct whisper gave him pause.

"You...you will never know...the true meaning of swordsman-"

"Die!"

And with that, Raijuta plunged his sword into the man's heart. As Koshijiro yelled in pain, Raijuta snarled, "You are the fool, Kamiya! You are too weak to see kenjutsu as it truly should be!"

The man at his feet convulsed before falling slack. "Fool," the general repeated, as he tore the sword out of the corpse, "I will create a new league of swordsmen, _Shinko-ryu_! Worthless men like you have only weakened the concept of kenjutsu! Katsujin-ken is a only a sham for those who are too afraid to kill."

In the midst of his harangue, he kicked the body aside. Raijuta spat on the ground before cursing, at the missing sight of his horse.

As he stalked through the fallen city, a dark smile contorted his features. With Koshijiro out of the way, the city as well as the Kamiya stronghold destroyed, this land was his.

It was almost time to deal with Jusanro.

* * *

**A/N:** Sorry if this seemed a bit (okay, very) choppy. I'm still getting used to this... and while I'm at it, I apologize for the delay. In truth, I thought little when I sat down and typed up the prologue. I took a few days off, then went to outline the plot for this story. Then the next thing you know, my crappy internet starts breaking down, consistently. For the next chapter, it will probably be fully written by next week. However, I'm going...to the beach! It might be delayed a bit, so please accept my apologies once more! Hopefully, it'll flow nicer after such a rough start.

A note:

sarashi- wrap worn to protect an individual from sword wounds.

juni-hitoe- twelve layered kimonos (often more) worn by court ladies.

bogu- practice armor one wears when training in kenjutsu. Kaoru is seen wearing bogu when training at Maekawa's.

I'm not sure if I conveyed the image of a Japanese castle too well (or at all). If you just google it up, you'll see what I mean. As for the genuity/accuracy of this fic, I can only say that it takes place somewhere around the 1400s to no later than the early 1600s. Not really good, but it's somewhat a spontaneous result of my school-worn brain.

To the reviewers: Thank you very much! The response was overwhelming. I'm gratuitous for all your support :)


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